Bird's Eye View
Page 55
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Teddy Boors' Picnic
By The Hawk
A BOORISH, swashbuckling open letter has been I-1 addressed by the works committee of Park Royal Vehicles, Ltd., "to 'employers engaged in the manufacture and marketing of motor vehicles and accessories." Its purpose is apparently to remind manufacturers of the importance of China as a market for commercial vehicles, and to persuade them to press the Government to allow such vehicles to be exported to that country. It is signed by H. C. Bailey, secretary of the works committee.
lithe attitude adopted by the authors of the letter towards employers were general in the industry, all hope of co-operation between workers and management, for their mutual good, would be lost. Fortunately it is not. If the Park Royal workers are sincere in their desire to promote trade with China they should try a more civilized approach. 'This is, after all, the season of good will to all men -even employers.
Clock Watchers!
IN these days of a large migrating population of workers, I long-service employees are to be prized—and not least by the makers of watches, clocks and cigarette cases !
The B.E.T. bus companies are among those who pride themselves on the large number of old servants still with them, and many a man looks with satisfaction at the gold watch that he received from the chairman of his company. Now the employees of East Yorkshire Motor Services, Ltd., who have spent at least a quarter of a century with the company and its predecessors, have formed a "25" Association with 90 foundation members.
This kind of movement is greatly to be encouraged. In companies in which wages are governed by union agreements, the opportunities of making financial distinctions between long-service and newer,employees are limited, and membership of an exclusive club is some consolation for lost pecuniary advantages.
Trouble in Paradise
AMAN who-was 'awarded £43,000 ,after: the .1914-18 war by the ROYal Commission for Inventbri'fOr his"viark in designing and developing the madial'aireraft'engine, and
_ whose inventive genius is said to have netted hint over £1m. in the past 40 years, has `produced a new enkitie.
He is Mr. Granville Bradshaw and he -hai designed an engine with only ninerrhoviiig parts. The 'annOuneeinent Was to have been made '6arly in the-NeW,Yedr, but Mr. Bradshaw has already released, details. On his o.tvrt account and I hear that his publicity agent has refused to .haVe anything more to do with the matter.
Hernando's Hideaway .
V/ISITING the transport .,.Manager 4,-. big, provincial V company, 'my colleague, Alan Smith. entered the spaciotis hall of the modern,foffice., block and was taken up in a noiseless Jift.by a smart commissionaire to one of the upper floors. Thc transport manager's office was down a wide, carpeted corridor.
"Mr. X won't be long," Said the commissionaire.
Mr. X duly arrived, panting a little, and in his company
Smith retraced his steps to the entrance hall, then outside, through the factory, and across the yard from the loading hay to the back of the garage. There stood a decrepit old van, down on its tyres, with a rickety flight of steps leading up to a door, which Mr. X tugged open.
Inside was a table serving as a desk, two simple chairs, a filing cabinet, a telephone with the receiver off and an electric fire with both bars switched on. .
"This is my real office," Mr. X explained. "Nobody can find me here and I can work in peace."
Not "Squeegee," Please
IT has been left to an air transport man to propose a new, A and not inappropriate, name for the single-deck bus -; designed to carry only a small number of seated passengers and a high proportion of people standing.
Mr. Peter G. Masefield, president of the Institute of Transport,. chiding Mr. J. B. Burnell for his use of the
term " standee bus in the Henry Spurrier Memorial Lecture, suggested with tongue-in-cheek the substitution of theterm " squeegee " bus. In fairness to Mr. Burnell, howeKe.r,. his own use of inverted commas suggested to use that he was not happy with the description.
The Commercial Motor studiously avoids " standee," for the very good reason that, on the same basis, the normal single.deck bus could be described as a " sittee " vehicle, and there is a limit to the indignities to which -the English language can be submitted. In any event, what is more descriptive than "crush-load single-decker "?